


Love and Wrath

by memequeen1127



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: First Kiss, Realization of Feelings, emotional fighting, fix-it of zutara vs azula agni kai, i needed a more emotional version of this scene so i wrote my own, yes im writing zutara fanfic in the year 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-06-07 18:30:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19474885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/memequeen1127/pseuds/memequeen1127
Summary: When Zuko dives in front of her and takes a bolt of lightning to the chest – a fucking bolt of lightning, just to save her - Katara feels her world stop.A re-write of everyone's favorite Zutara scene because we all needed it.





	Love and Wrath

When Zuko dives in front of her and takes a bolt of lightning to the chest – a fucking _bolt of lightning_ , just to save her - Katara feels her world stop.

She’s vaguely aware of Azula laughing, sounding even more unhinged than she looks, and somehow her brain knows she needs to stop her, but all Katara can do is stare in horror at Zuko’s smoking body, still sparking from his sister’s lightning.

“He…..saved me?” She thinks dimly, tears running freely down her face. “No, no, no, NO!” Katara screams and, somehow, finds a sliver of anger out of all the pain and fear she feels from seeing Zuko face down in front of her. She’s still processing what just happened, but her feelings are overwhelming and cannot be contained. The anger she’s feeling grows stronger as she realizes the person responsible for Zuko – for _her Zuko_ – being on the brink of death is still stumbling around, laughing manically.

Azula acts like she’s lost all grip on sanity, and striking her brother with a seemingly killing blow only makes it worse. Katara can see the madness in her face, in her walk, in her laugh. Her laugh, her _laugh_ – laughing at Zuko’s almost certain death. Katara feels the anger growing stronger inside her, eclipsing both the incredible pain and fear in her heart, until she lashes out at the one who is causing it all.

Katara flies at Azula, drawing her water around her in a massive attack, aiming to drown her, to just get her to stop _laughing_. She embraces the pain, the fear, and the anger that roars like Azula’s fire in her heart. But the fire is pushing her back, keeping her from getting close enough to take the crazy bitch down.

The two women move like opposing forces of nature, Azula fueled by the comet and Katara fueled by the kind of anger that only arises from the severance of a deep love. “No”, Katara thinks stubbornly, “He can’t be gone, he can’t…” The master waterbender repeats these words to herself, unleashing her anger on Azula – but it’s not enough.

Azula is too powerful for Katara in a straightforward fight like this, a fact that even Katara in her current overwhelmed state knows to be true. Katara pulls back her attacks and retreats behind a pillar of the building at the end of the courtyard, away from Azula and….away from Zuko. More tears threaten to run down Katara’s face at the thought of him, laying on the ground not 20 feet away from her, likely dead. Refusing to let her hope extinguish, the waterbender tries to focus on a way to defeat Azula. Only then, with her out of the way, can Katara safely get to Zuko.

Somehow, her languished mind comes up with a plan, a plan that might just work since Azula is even more unhinged and irrational than Katara is right now. Glancing at the running water underneath the grate she’s standing on, and the heavy chains on the outside wall of the building, Katara starts to feel something other than pain, anger, or fear; determination rears its head in Katara’s heart. “If only I can do this, if only I can defeat Azula…then I can get to Zuko. And if he’s not….if he’s still alive, then I could heal him”, Katara thinks to herself, though the tears down her face indicate her heart is not as hopeful as her head.

Nevertheless, Katara has a plan and she clings to it, her pain and anger desperate to see Azula in chains for what she’s done to her brother.

With a mind full of Zuko, pain, fear, and wrathful anger, Katara runs out from behind the pillar, grabbing the chains from the wall. She makes sure to stand over the grate as she dodges Azula’s fire, luring her closer, closer, just a little closer –

Until Azula is so close to Katara her hand, ready to ignite with a lethal bolt of blue fire, is pointed directly at her face, just a hair away. Only then, does Katara throw her arms up, and with it, the running water from the grate, freezing it all in less than a second.

Frozen in place, Azula looks surprised. As though even in her shattered mental state she can’t comprehend how a water tribe _peasant_ could have ever defeated her. As Katara breaths out of her nose, defrosts herself, and wraps the heavy chains around the almost-Firelord’s wrists, she feels a slight amount of righteous anger and satisfaction at having finally defeated Azula.

And as Katara unfreezes the water, drenching Azula and grounding her to the grate with her chains, she feels that anger draining out of her just as quick, leaving only the world-stopping fear she never really stopped feeling.

Ignoring Azula and her anguished cries, Katara turns and sees Zuko, face down on the ground 20 feet away, still laying there and sparking from the lightning.

Slow steps turn to frantic running as Katara fights to get to Zuko as fast as she can.

_Step –_

Katara remembers how angry she was at Zuko when he first showed up at the Western Air Temple, eventually becoming a part of their team. She remembers threatening him, assuring him that his life would be over if he did anything that made it seem like he was back to his old ways. Now, Katara can’t believe how the life she threatened to end is the same one she desperately wants to save.

_Step_ –

She remembers Zuko offering to help her avenge her mother, to get closure – something only he understood. He understood how important that was to her, not Aang, not even Sokka. Zuko was there when she almost killed that old man, and she remembered how he didn’t say anything about it, content to let her make her own choice. He even looked in awe of her waterbending power. Katara is still in awe of his respect for her power and her choices.

_Step_ –

Coming back from that trip, something changed. Katara no longer had any anger towards Zuko; instead, there was respect, and even a bloom of affection. After all they had been through together, on opposite sides and working together, Katara started to see Zuko as he really was – a guy struggling with grief from his mother, abuse and rejection from his father, and a desperation to do the right thing. After that trip, Katara started to realize how much they had in common. She understood Zuko, and Zuko understood her in turn.

_Step_ –

Running towards Zuko now, with fresh tears streaming down her face, Katara is hit with a truth. It’s a truth so obvious, yet one she’s been too busy to address. Her respect and affection for Zuko had turned into something else. Katara is unsure when it happened, but she realizes now that she would do anything for Zuko to be alive. If Zuko died by jumping in front of lightning to save her, Katara will surely go as insane as Azula. And that is because of one simple, obvious truth.

“I’m in love with him”, Katara thinks blindly.

Her steps come to a skidding halt as she finally, _finally_ reaches him. She falls to her knees, eyes widening as she gently turns him on his back. Katara is afraid to look, afraid of what she’ll see, but not looking at Zuko was never an option. She’s close enough now to see the lightning scar on this chest, to see his body shake, to see his face….

His face scrunched up in an expression of pain, proof that Zuko is not dead.

Katara rejoices, thanking the spirits that Zuko is still alive, alive enough for her to heal him. She quickly gets her healing water out, it swirling just as much as her overwhelming emotions. As Katara gets ready to put her hands on the lightning scar, she hears Zuko speak.

“Katara…..” is all he says, reaching up to brush his hand gently across her cheek.

Katara openly sobs, grabbing Zuko’s hand and holding it there on her face. Her other hand is covered with water and she presses it to his chest, starting to heal the damage of Azula’s strike. As tears continue to fall down her face, Katara prays that her healing will be enough, that this boy she loves will survive.

Eventually, after minutes, seconds, maybe hours – Katara doesn’t know – Zuko’s expression of pain melts away, replaced by one of peace. Katara sobs again, relief all she feels now, relief that she healed Zuko enough, that _Zuko is going to survive_.

Zuko speaks again, exhausted, “Thank you, Katara”. His hand, still held in place by Katara’s, strokes her cheek softly.

Katara wildly breathes out a laugh, clutching his hand to her face, responding “I think I should be the one thanking you.”

They stay like that, eyes closed, the touch of each other enough.

Enough, until Katara realizes that after today, after Zuko almost sacrificed his life for her, after realizing she’s in love, she can’t go back to the way things were before. There’s no way she can ignore or hide all the things she’s feeling, and she finds she doesn’t want to anyway. The pain, the fear, the anger, the _love_ – she wants to let it all out.

So she does. Katara gently lowers Zuko’s hand from her face, moving both their hands to rest on Zuko’s cheek. Confused, he asks “Katara?”, but Katara doesn’t respond, cupping his cheek the way he cupped hers a minute ago, and leans in to press her lips against his.

It’s gentle, it has to be, because Zuko is still hurt. But Katara doesn’t hold back, she unleashes all her feelings into the kiss. “I love you”, she says through it, “I was afraid you were dead, I was so angry at your sister, I didn’t want to lose you”.

Zuko takes a moment to process, but kisses her back, just as gentle and intense as Katara is kissing him. With his kiss, Katara understands that Zuko is saying, “I’m sorry for scaring you, but I would jump in front of lightning again if it meant saving you. I’m in love with you.”

As they lay there in the Agni Kai courtyard, kissing passionately, Azula screaming behind them, Katara feels that, even though she doesn’t yet know if Aang defeated Ozai, her war has finished.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I haven't written anything in years and I randomly got inspired to write this. I hope y'all enjoyed my emotional, shippy version of this awesome scene. Comments and Kudos much appreciated!!


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